KKFI’s 25th Anniversary: Celebrating 25 Years of People-Powered Radio

Dear KKFI Listeners and Supporters:

Twenty five years. It’s a little hard for me to believe that we’re celebrating a quarter century of community radio, but here we are, broadcasting from Kansas City, Missouri, for all the world to hear. And it’s all thanks to you, who have supported us through thick and thin.

Do you know what makes KKFI different than any other radio station in the region? It’s the tremendous support we receive from community volunteers – music deejays, public-affairs hosts, and technicians and advisors — — that allows us to multiply your financial donation many times over.

KKFI’s founding volunteers came together in 1977 as the Mid Coast Radio Project, when the promise of a community radio station was no more than a gleam in their collective eye. These dedicated volunteers stayed together for 11 challenging, frustrating years, staying together through setback after setback, organizing and raising funds and filing applications with the FCC. Eleven years of perseverance, raising hundreds of thousands of dollars, finding and buying broadcast equipment, building a broadcast tower, filing and re-filing for an FCC license, struggling and organizing and jumping through bureaucratic hoops until finally, on February 28, 1988, KKFI began broadcasting for the first time — from the basement of a volunteer’s home.

What this donation of literally hundreds of thousands of volunteer hours over the years means to you is that when you do your part to support community radio by voluntarily donating your hard-earned money, we are able to stretch and multiply your donation many times over. Rather than paying on-air talent and a large office staff, your donations go directly to support quality community programming.

I would like to ask that you consider making your gift before we go on-air February 8th – a jumpstart to this, our 25th anniversary celebration pledge drive. We’ll count the pledges KKFI receives in the mail and online and subtract that from our goal of $80,000. Then once we reach the goal, it will be back to regular programming.

If you agree with me that we need to hear fresh and different voices, please take a moment to show your support. Donate on-line at http://www.kkfi.org/donate/.

And thanks for your support over the years. It couldn’t have happened without you.